But it was the girl who commanded their attention. She wore homespun and appeared about seven years old, a tiny thing who clutched at the hand upon her shoulder. Her blue eyes were enormous, illuminating a pale face of delicate features. Her hair was almost as white as the old man’s, holding only a hint of gold. What struck Dominic, Gardan, and Kasumi was an overwhelming feeling that this child was perhaps the most beautiful they had ever seen. Already they could see in those childish features the promise of a woman of unsurpassed beauty.
Kulgan guided the old man to a chair next to his own. The girl did not sit, but chose to stand beside the man, both hands on his shoulder, fingers flexing nervously, as if she feared to lose contact with him. She looked at the three strangers with the expression of a cornered wild thing. She took no pains to disguise her distrust.
Pug said, “This is Rogen.”
The blind man leaned forward. “Whom do I meet?” His face, despite the age it showed, was alive and smiling, uptilted as if to hear better. It was evident that he, unlike the girl, enjoyed the prospect of meeting newcomers.
Pug introduced the three men, who sat opposite Kulgan and Rogen. The blind man’s smile broadened. “I am pleased to meet you, worthy gentlemen.”
Then Pug said, “This is Gamina.”
Dominic and the others were startled when the girl’s voice sounded in their heads. Hello.
The girl’s mouth had not moved. She was motionless, her enormous blue eyes fixed upon them.
Gardan said, “Did she speak?”
Kulgan answered, “With her mind. She has no other power of speech.”
Rogen reached up to pat the girl’s hands. “Gamina was born with this gift, though she nearly drove her mother crazy with her silent crying.” The old man’s face became solemn. “Gamina’s mother and father were stoned to death by the people of her village, for having birthed a demon. Poor, superstitious people they were. They feared to kill the baby, thinking she would revert to her ‘natural’ form and slay them all, so they left her in the forest to die of exposure. She was not yet three years old.”
Gamina looked at the old man with penetrating eyes. He turned to face her, as if he could see her, and said, “Yes, that is when I found you.”
To the others he said, “I was living in the forest, in an abandoned hunter’s lodge I had discovered. I also was driven from my home village, but that was years earlier. I foretold the death of the town miller and was blamed for it. I was branded a warlock.”
Pug said, “Rogen has the power of second sight, perhaps to compensate for his blindness. He has been without sight since birth.”
Rogen smiled broadly and patted the girl’s hands. “We are alike, we two, in many ways. I had grown to fear what would become of the girl when I die.” He interrupted himself to speak to the girl, who had become agitated at his words. She stood shaking, her eyes welling up with tears. “Hush,” he scolded gently. “I will, too—everyone does. I hope not too soon, though,” he added with a chuckle. He returned to his narrative. “We came from a village near Salador. When word reached us of this wondrous place, we started our journey. It took six months to walk here, mostly because I am so old. Now we have found people like ourselves, who view us as a source of knowledge, not a source of fear. We are home.”
Dominic shook his head, amazed that a man his age and a child had walked hundreds of miles. He was obviously moved. “I am beginning to understand another part of what it is you do here. Are there many more like these two?”
Pug said, “Not as many as I would like. Some of the more established magicians refuse to join us. Others fear us. They will not reveal their abilities. Others simply do not yet know we exist. But some, like Rogen, seek us out. We have nearly fifty practitioners of magic here.”
“That is a great many,” said Gardan.
Kasumi said, “In the Assembly there were two thousand Great Ones.”
Pug nodded. “We also had nearly that number who followed the Lesser Path. And of those who rose to the black robe, the sign of the Greater Magician, each was but one in five who began training, under conditions more rigorous than we are capable of here or would desire.”
Dominic looked at Pug. “What of the others, those who failed their training?”
“They were killed,” Pug answered flatly.
Dominic judged it a topic Pug did not wish to pursue. A flicker of fear crossed the girl’s face and Rogen said, “Hush, hush. No one will hurt you here. He was speaking of a faraway place. Someday you will be a great teacher.”
The girl relaxed, and a faint flicker of pride in her expression could be seen. It was obvious she doted upon the old man.
Pug said, “Rogen, there is something taking place that your powers may aid us in understanding. Will you help?”
“Is it that important?”
“I would not ask if it were not vital. Princess Anita lies in peril and Prince Arutha is at constant risk from some unknown enemy.”